


Need to Know

by ChettaDrabbles (KOranges)



Category: Captain America (Comics), Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Attempt at Humor, Avengers Family, Gen, Humor, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Pre-Captain America: Civil War (Movie)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-06
Updated: 2017-06-06
Packaged: 2018-11-09 22:28:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11114199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KOranges/pseuds/ChettaDrabbles
Summary: Pepper had a job to do. And if she had to be a little underhanded to do it....Well, there were some things the Avengers didn't need to know.





	Need to Know

**Author's Note:**

> Each of these drabbles are inspired by a prompt I received during an eight month long writing challenge. I'll only be sharing my favorites but every Tuesday & Thursday and I'll post a new one. 
> 
> *Written Pre-Civil War*
> 
> Prompt: "I'd love to help but ________"

“I’d love to help but my automated quiver just broke. I need to get it to Stark ASAP Super complicated. Could take a while. It's...not...holding arrows.” Clint excused. It didn’t even matter to him the Tony was in the room with them. 

“Clint, that doesn’t even make sense.” Pepper rolled her eyes. 

“Sure it does, see you tomorrow.” Clint was already out of the door and running down the hallway. She stared down at the stack of papers in front of her and groaned. 

“I’m like eighty percent sure that isn’t possible,” she said to herself. 

“I make the things. So I’m a hundred percent sure.” She turned to Tony and glared. 

“Are you volunteering to help?” She challenged. 

The issue was she had made the promise to the school as part of some PR measures of the catastrophe in DC. There was a lot of public anxiety about Superheroes and (now) the groups that controlled them. Pundits were all making big stands about the danger of supporting a hero who didn’t offer some kind of allegiance to the American government. In the form of a signed contractual document. The irony of Captain America tearing it up in their faces on live TV had been lost on them. 

At the time, promising a school full of children the chance to meet 'real-live-superheroes' had been a great one. It would be good press. Kids were some of the only groups that still loved all of this super powered nonsense. They saw the cool costumes and crazy moves and didn’t really care about the political sides of the arguments. Kids were great. 

“Can I take a rain check?” Tony stood quickly and moved for the door. “Schedule me in for the second Tuesday after never.” 

Pepper groaned. “Tony.” 

“I don’t do kids.” He gave her a mock shiver and shook his head. 

He fled and nearly took down Pepper on his way out the door. She looked a little tired but that probably came from having to be both CEO to a multi-national corporation and wrangling Tony Stark on the same day. She poured herself a coffee and sat back down just as Steve and Bucky came into the room followed by Maria. Maria sat down next to her easily while the boys eyed Pepper warily. Before she even opened her mouth both of them were shaking their heads. 

“We already heard.” Started Steve. 

“And the answer is no.” Finished Bucky. 

“Bucky doesn’t like to be in crowds that big.” Steve shrugged. 

“Not to mention that I don’t think I am what the kids had in mind when you promised them heroes.” Bucky nodded and smirked towards Steve. 

“Actually you’re really popular with the kids. You ranked third.” Maria told them, lifting a sheet Pepper had left out from the table that she had been reading. There had been focus groups, she remembered, because Pepper was thorough. And while Tony had won and bragged about it for weeks, nobody really mentioned who came in third. 

“I am? I did?” He came behind her shoulder and read the report. 

“Just behind Iron Man and Thor.” Maria pointed to the relevant line. 

“Wait.” Steve frowned. “That means-” 

“I beat you.” James laughed and bounced up and down while Steve gaped like a fish. 

"There's not a chance. Let me see that.” Steve took the papers and frowned down at them while James continued to crow around the little kitchen area. 

“5 to 13 year olds love him.” Maria shrugged. 

“It must be a mistake.” Steve huffed. 

“Don’t be a sore loser, Stevie.” James taunted him. 

This continued for a long time. James was incredibly proud of his ranking, mostly for being a step above Steve. Steve was both shocked and a little offended. He called the whole report into question and determined that the group who put the report together had miscalculated something. 

“I demand to see the math behind it.” Steve nodded. “They made a mistake.” 

James laughed. “You are checking someone’s math work?” 

“I can do math.” Steve pouted. 

“The last time I saw that happen you were still five foot nothing stuffing your shoes with newspaper.” He teased. 

“I want a recount.” Steve insisted. 

“Maybe we can have the kids resurveyed.” Pepper nodded casually. Too casually. Maria covered her smirk with her hand. “After they see you both in person. You know. Get a better experience.” 

Both men nodded as if this was genius and ran out of the room to make plans. Five minutes later Tony came in shouting about them challenging his position as favorite and talking about extensive upgrades to his latest suit that were sure to thrill the little ones. Not to be outdone, Clint started planning an archery show. Sam and Rhodey agreed to bring out their Falcon and War Machine suits to ‘bring some color to the mayonnaise party’. Even Natasha had agreed, grudgingly, to do a basic self-defense lesson once Pepper mentioned Clint had been bragging about being ahead of her in the rankings. 

By the end of the day there was not a single Avenger or trainee Avenger was without plans to make an appearance and blow the minds of some young kids and preteens. Even Scott, Vision, and Wanda had joined in. Bruce agreed to come as Dr. Bruce Banner and “blow their minds with some science". That sounded destructive but it wasn’t even the worst on the list. Maria wasn’t sure the school was expecting the full pyrotechnic display Tony was planning that would surely void their insurance policy, but it would certainly make an impact. Hopefully the good kind. 

Maria grinned. “I knew I liked you.” 

"What?" Pepper looked up from her laptop briefly. 

"You play a good game.” Maria told her. 

“I’m not sure what you mean.” Pepper feigned innocence. 

“That was brilliant.” Maria grinned. She hadn't moved from her seat in the kitchen just to watch it all go down. Pepper smirked over her laptop and sent and email to the school board that served as both announcement and warning of the impending show. 

“They’re good guys.” Pepper shrugged. 

"They are." Maria nodded. 

"They just needed a push." 

"Agreed." 

They paused at a stalemate for a moment. Maria was waiting for Pepper to crack but she couldn't contain her own amusement over the whole plot. “That was the best con I think I’ve ever seen. And that's saying something. They don’t even realize they’ve been had.” 

Pepper knew when she’d been caught. “They needed a little push.” 

“What did you do with the original report? And when?" Maria asked. 

“The world will never see it. And the team will never, ever know.” Pepper declared ominously, pouring herself and Maria a glass of wine. It had been shredded within minutes of her receiving in the first place. Maria saluted her with the wine glass. 

“Next time," Maria suggested, "don’t let Tony win.” 

Some things the Avengers never needed to know.


End file.
